Kids! Love ‘em to pieces, but they’re the ultimate time suck. So, where does that leave your marriage? We caught up with actress Bryce Dallas Howard—a married mom of two—for an exclusive chat in New York City, where she was helping to promote Tide Purclean, the first plant-based (and family-friendly) detergent made using 100 percent wind-generated electricity.
The Rocketman star is the first to acknowledge: Carving out one-on-one time with your spouse while kids are actively (and always) competing for your attention is tough. “My parents used to go on a date night every single week,” she says. “My husband and I don't do that—not even close. If it’s once a year, it’s awesome.”
Still, she recently got some thoughtful advice from her dad (ahem, big-time movie director Ron Howard) that helped her put things in perspective: “He was telling a story to someone about this very idea and giving an example about choosing marriage over the kids. He said, ‘Remember, she stays, [the kids] leave. She stays!’ In other words, [your spouse] is the person you're spending your whole life with.”
Definitely food for thought—and a good reminder when you’re working overtime to fit everything in. Bryce added: “It's not actually that you should prioritize the marriage over your children, it’s just that it’s often assumed that you prioritize your children over the marriage. This is really more about putting them on equal footing.”
